March 2, 2015

New Mexico senator talks about student PARCC protests [VIDEO]

Students throughout the state staged walkouts today in protests over the start of standardized testing.

This week marks the start of standardized testing for students. The controversial standardized tests, developed by Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers. The PARCC exams have been highly debated in the legislative session this year and many students in New Mexico have staged walkouts to protest the standardized assessments.

Some people have said the students protesting are learning a lesson in in standing up for their rights. Others have said students should stay in classes for their own safety and that tests are a part of life beyond school. The state’s Public Education Department has said the PARCC test is similar to the previous SBA tests.

New Mexico Political Report spoke with Sen. Bill Soules, D-Las Cruces, about students’ decision to leave school in protest. Soules is also a teacher in the Las Cruces Public School system.

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New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham announced Wednesday a slight easing of COVID-19 restrictions, while also announcing some increased restrictions as of Saturday, May 16.
While Lujan Grisham said the state would start allowing retailers and some other businesses to open to the public with capacity limitations, she also said the new public health emergency order will require everyone in the state to wear a face and nose covering when in public spaces.
She said many businesses, with the exception of entertainment businesses like movie theaters, could open this weekend as long as they keep their capacity at 25 percent of what the fire code allows. She said those businesses must also continue to take certain precautions against spreading COVID-19.
Large retail “box” stores would have their capacity capped at 20 percent.

A day after state health officials announced the highest single-day number of COVID-19 cases since the beginning of the pandemic, they announced 129 additional confirmed cases and five additional deaths related to the disease. On Saturday, the state Department of Health announced five additional cases at the Otero County Prison Facility.

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed a bill into law Friday that protects working mothers and new moms from discrimination in the workplace. HB 25, or the Pregnant Worker Accommodation Bill, amends the state’s Human Rights Act to make pregnancy, childbirth and conditions related to either a protected class from employment discrimination.

Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller this week told city police officers to stop the city’s DWI vehicle seizure program. Under existing ordinance, the police department can impound vehicles after DWI arrests, but before the driver has been convicted.

It was right after the fifth-period bell last October that Sebastian Montano lay face down in the grass outside Alamogordo High School, screaming for his mother, as two police officers pinned him to the ground and thrust a Taser in his back. Moments earlier, a staff member had called police after learning that the 16-year-old, a special needs student who’d recently dropped out, was now trespassing on school grounds.

The start of controversial standardized tests in New mexico on Monday sparked protests throughout the state. Students, teachers and parents throughout the country have protested the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) exam.

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A day after state health officials announced the highest single-day number of COVID-19 cases since the beginning of the pandemic, they announced 129 additional confirmed cases and five additional deaths related to the disease.

State Human Services Department Secretary Dr. David Scrase offered some data supporting the use of masks and social distancing to help slow the spread of COVID-19.
The use of face masks in public has become a polarizing topic among some communities as the state has loosened its restrictions on businesses, including closures, over the last week.
While cloth masks aren’t suitable for use in healthcare settings, Scrase said they are still useful at preventing the spread of the illness among the general public.

Public health orders restricting some businesses and public gatherings are slowly being lifted, but the New Mexico Supreme Court’s restrictions on eviction proceedings and limitations on civil cases in general are still in place.